docs: def _sanitize_config(config):
          '''check that the config has the correct keys, add missing keys if necessary'''
          if 'checks' in config:
              checks = config['checks']
              if 'structural_checks' not in checks:
                  checks['structural_checks'] = []
              if 'neuron_checks' not in checks:
                  checks['neuron_checks'] = []
          else:
              raise ConfigError('Need to have "checks" in the config')
  
          if 'options' not in config:
              L.debug('Using default options')
              config['options'] = {}
  
          if 'color' not in config:
              config['color'] = False
  
          return config